Standing Firm
Notes
Transcript
WELCOME:
It is good to see everyone here today. As you can see our parking lot did not get sealed again this week. They are supposed to get it done this week, so stand by.
Lets begin the service with a Word from the Lord:
SCRIPTURE READING:
Psalm 1 “How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the path of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of scoffers! But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night. He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, Which yields its fruit in its season And its leaf does not wither; And in whatever he does, he prospers. The wicked are not so, But they are like chaff which the wind drives away. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, Nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, But the way of the wicked will perish.”
Opening Prayer:
Lord, thank you for your constancy. For never turning Your back on us, for never getting frustrated with us, for forgiving our sins, for allowing us to be part of Your plan. We ask that You would look down upon this gathering of people and fill our hearts with great joy today as we focus on You. Amen!
LET US STAND AND WORSHIP!
“The Goodness of God”
Words and Music by Hillsong’
“What a beautiful Name”
Words and Music by Hillsong
“What a beautiful Name”
Words and Music by Hillsong
PRAYER OF ILLUMINATION TO OPEN OUR HEARTS
Lord, give us ears to hear Your voice and eyes to see Your glory. Would you this morning illuminate Your Word and make it known to us? Help us no to make application to others peoples’ lives, but to apply every Word to our own lives. Amen
SERMON
INTRODUCTION:
Picking up in chapter 4 today which is the final chapter of Philippians and Paul’s closing thoughts:
Philippians 4:1 (NASB95)
Therefore, my beloved brethren whom I long to see, my joy and crown, in this way stand firm in the Lord, my beloved.
Now what Paul is going to do in these first 9 verses is give the Philippian church practical ways that they can stand firm in the Lord.
Paul says, “in this way”
In what way? In the ways he will describe in the following verses (2-9)
What does it mean to stand firm in the Lord?
To be firmly committed in conviction or belief (BDAG)
To stand firm means that we maintain what we have! That against all attacks from the enemy, against all temptations to sin against God, against the constant beckoning from this world to come pursue it, we STAND OUR GROUND!
Sometimes we think of Christianity as going to war (and it certainly it is true that we are in a war) but the call in the NT is not to go out and fight, but to stand firm in what we have.
Listen to these verses:
Ephesians 6:11 “Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.”
Ephesians 6:13 “Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.”
Ephesians 6:14 “Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,”
Principle: Our success in this Christian life is not about how well we fight, but whether or not we are willing to stand firm.
Standing is more about perseverance, about the willingness to continue on and endure hard times, AND walking away when things get tough!
And all you need “to stand” is faith:
Look what it says, “stand firm in the Lord”. When we hold our ground, what we are doing is refusing to fall back because our trust is in the Lord.
We are not relying on our own abilities or power, but on the abilities and power of God to see us through.
The call here is that Christians would be stable, unwavering, reliable, faithful, unmoving, unwilling to give up ground despite any kind of difficulties because they are standing in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Paul moves from the command to “stand firm” into practical reasons ways of how we can stand firm in the Lord:
In verses 2-9 we will find three things:
1) We stand firm when we get along with other Christians
1) We stand firm when we get along with other Christians
I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to live in harmony in the Lord. Indeed, true companion, I ask you also to help these women who have shared my struggle in the cause of the gospel, together with Clement also and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life. Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near.
Explanation:
Euodia and Syntyche are a couple of women in this church who evidently are not getting along. We are not given any details of the dispute, and it is likely that others were drawn into this dispute as well causing some division in the church. .
I want you to notice that Paul does not take sides, nor does he ask for a council to be set up in the church to decide between the two and see which one is right!
What he suggests is that they are both wrong and then urges them to put aside their differences and live in harmony together!
This is how they are to do that: “LIVE IN HARMONY IN THE LORD”
That is they are to think the same and have their minds set on their life in Jesus Christ! Put away their differences, put away their animosities and consider that their life in Christ calls them to be unified.
Unfortunately, this kind of thing is so common in our churches today. In a faith that calls for unity and oneness we as Christians see just as much division as worldly organizations: possibly even more!
Think about this church (btw this is not a critique, just an example)
As we have spent the last several weeks cleaning we have gone through two filing cabinets keeping what’s important and tossing out the rest.
During this process, I came across some documents of a dispute in Eastview, that led to a church split about 10 years ago. If you had any involvement in that, this is not a critique against you and quite honestly I am sorry that you had to experienced that. An entire church split because of an unresolved dispute.
And I also learned over the past few months that Eastview began as a split from Pembroke Baptist church. Most likely over a dispute.
And I also learned some time ago that Living Hope (our sending church) was a split from Trinity Baptist on Lafayette rd.
And the church I pastored in North Christian had a big split before I came there, with many disputes still unresolved and church still angry and harboring resentment.
Again, this is not a critique, but merely examples of how this very thing happens all the time. and quite often they leave paths of destruction and chaos in the church.
When these things happen, they are a far cry from the words of Jesus:
John 13:35 “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
Divisions and fighting do not portray the bride of Christ in a manner worthy of the gospel to the world!
When the world sees divisions, they say those Christians are no different than anyone else. They cannot get along with themselves, why would I want to be a part of that!
AND PAUL IS SAYING IN LIGHT OF THIS THESE TWO WOMEWN ARE TO PUT ASIDE THEIR DIFFERENCES AND MAKE UP (IN THE LORD).
I UNDERSTAND THAT NOT ALL DISPUTES CAN BE RECONCILED
There is a call for unity, and if at all possible, be unified! BUT sometimes there is a time to stand up for truth.
Adrain Rogers would say, “it is better to be divided by truth than united by error”
And it is quite possible that some of the splits and divisions that occur could have been because of doctrinal error. But it is hard to think every split is because of truth and not because of personal preference, or music style, or updating the building, or because one family simply does not like another family.
(v 3) “Indeed, true companion, I ask you also to help these women who have shared my struggle in the cause of the gospel”
This is a call for a mediator. “True companion” is probably one of Paul’s ministry partners and he is advising him to help these women work things out!
What a wise piece of information that is so useful to churches today who are experiencing conflicts! Use a third party mediator when divisiveness occurs.
What this does is bring a perspective from an outside person who has no involvement in the conflict. And without being emotionally involved, they can help guide them to unity.
I think it even best to bring someone in from an outside Christian organization like the KBC to help mediate differences like these.
(v 5) “Let your gentle spirit be known to all men”
Gentleness can really keep small things from becoming big things. Gentleness can keep a small difference or misunderstanding between two people from becoming a major conflict or even a church dividing.
The opposite of gentle is to be harsh, to be stern, to be slash people like a knife with our words!
It’s to have an attitude that says, “I don’t care how I make you feel with what I say, thats how i feel!”
And it has taken me 15 years to even begin to learn the value of being gentle…AND even if you think you are standing on the Word of God, that does not mean that we can excuse the call to be gentle.
Someone might say in response to that, “well I’m just not a gentle person”. I would say to you, if you have truly been born again then gentleness is a part of your new DNA, you just have to choose it.
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness”
If you have Christ in you, then the fruit of that is to be gentle. You may not be where you should be, but you certainly can be gentle.
Personal advice:
We are inevitably going to have differences in church with other people. Somewhere down the road, some kind of conflict, some kind of person will come in here and not see eye to eye with you or me and this will present the opportunity for division.
And when this happens, most people simply pack up their bags and leave. Don’t be that person who leaves. Don’t be the one who runs away.
Standing firm in the Lord Jesus is not running away from difficult people in our lives. Standing firm means we hold our ground, not to fight, but to resolve our differences for the glory of God!
Take the advice of Paul and live in harmony together! Work out your differences with that person. If you can’t, get a mediator. If you still cannot, then kiss and make up and look ahead for the sake of Jesus Christ!
Real spiritual growth happens when we are able to work through these things without dividing.
2) We stand firm by being faithful in prayer
2) We stand firm by being faithful in prayer
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Explanation:
“Be anxious for nothing” (more accurately: “stop worrying”)
In other words, anxiety is not necessary for the believer. We do not live like the world lives, with fears and anxiety for what tomorrow holds.
We do not live in a world that simply exists and spins out of control without any kind of involvement from God.
WE DO LIVE in a world THAT WE KNOW is under the control of the Almighty!
Notice he says, “be anxious for NOTHING”
Do you know what that word means in the Greek? IT MEANS NOTHING
We do not have to worry about how we will pay our bills
We do not have to worry about what other people think of us
We do not have to worry about what our future holds
We do not have to worry about our spouses or our children
We do not have to worry about our health
WE DO NOT NEED TO WORRY ABOUT ANYTHING!!
Why? Because our future does not come by happenstance, or coincidence, or by what kind of mood Mother Earth is in today! Our lives are under the watchful eye of the Almighty!
Nothing happens to us without God’s permission!
Nothing enters our life that God does not allow and ALL that God allows is for our good
Romans 8:28 “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”
Instead of worry, what should we do?
“But in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God”
Instead of worrying, we are to call upon the One who holds the world in His hands. When worries enter our minds and we begin to feel anxious about any given situation the antidote for that worry is prayer!
Now look at the repetition used in this verse about prayer: prayer, supplication, requests. All three of these things mean the same thing: PRAY AND THEN PRAY SOME MORE! Thats what Paul is saying!
Don’t just say a prayer in the morning and be done with it, pray all throughout the day. Pray every time you think about it. Pray every time worry creeps back in.
What we do when we pray, is take whatever it is that we have on our hearts and minds and hand them over to the Supreme Being of the Universe who can do anything and trust that He will work “all things together for good for those who love God”!
Look at this verse from Ephesians:
Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us,
Not only is God able, but He is able to do FAR MORE THAN WE ASK OR THINK
Finally in all of our prayers, there should be thanksgiving
Prayer is more than just lifting up requests to God for help. Prayer is more than asking God to meet our needs. Prayer is a form of worship, and worship includes thanksgiving and praise:
Thanksgiving is a characteristic of a person who knows the Lord.
Thanksgiving should flow out of the mouth of His godly ones, not just for answered prayers, but simply because they have the privilege to know God!
Psalm 95:2 “Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving, Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms.”
Psalm 100:4 “Enter His gates with thanksgiving And His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him, bless His name.”
Psalm 64:10 “The righteous man will be glad in the Lord and will take refuge in Him”
It’s not about our circumstances, its about where we stand in the Lord Jesus Christ!
And thanksgiving reorients our minds to remember despite whatever it is before me, I am in Christ and in Christ not even death can have the final say!
And if we do that, heres the promise: (v 7) “And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
IF instead of worrying we will pray and put our trust in the Lord, then the peace of God will guard our hearts and minds.
What is the peace of God? There are all sorts of words used to describe peace: tranquility, contentment, well-being. My favorite is simply INWARD REST.
Peace is something that takes place inside the mind and heart which override the human emotions of anxiety, fear, and chaos that so many experience.
And notice that this is not just peace, but “the peace of God”. That is, because GOD IS THE VERY SOURCE OF TRUE PEACE.
Peace is what He gives to us. It’s not something we can create on our own, it must come down from the Father of Lights into our lives.
And that happens when we pray, and we hand God all of our worries and all of our anxiety and we say God I know You can handle it, here you go.
And when we truly trust those things to the hands of Almighty God, the result, the promised result is inward rest.
What is it today that you need rest from? What is it today that has your worried or is producing anxiety in your life?
Whatever it is, nothing could be better than laying it down today in the hands of the Almighty and trusting that He can do what we cannot.
3) Set your mind on godly things
3) Set your mind on godly things
Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things. The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.
Explanation:
I love these verses, and how we need to heed them today. In our world that is stuffing tons of worldly information, pictures, thoughts, videos, philosophies, even lies into our minds….Paul says dwell on these things:
The word dwell means “to ponder”. But the Greek word means that our pondering of these things should be so serious that it should lead to a change of action.
That is that we are to think about what is true, what is honorable, what is right, what is pure, what is lovely, what is of good repute, and as we contemplate them deeply and daily!
What we think about in our daily lives will inevitably influence our actions and how we live our lives. “So as a man thinks, so he is!”
This is a call for right thinking! We are the product of what we think about!
If we think about what right, we will do what is right!
If we ponder truth, we will practice truth!
If we think about things that are honorable, then we will live lives worthy of honor!
We are a product of our thoughts!
And the same is true for worldly thinking
If we set our minds on earthly things, then we will live like the people of this earth.
If we set our minds on sin, then sin is in our future!
If we set our minds on resentment and hatred, then we will become resentful and hateful!
Transformation does not come into our lives by the way we feel!
There are many days we do not feel like doing what we know we should do! BUT Feelings have nothing to do with it!
If we allow our feelings to become our guide in life then WE WILL NOT STAND FIRM IN THE LORD!
We will be like a reed blowing in the wind, like someone who is blown this way and that way by every thing that comes into our lives!
Or we will be like a house built on sinking sand, and as soon as turmoil comes (and it will) our house falls to the ground!
We are to be a people who live by truth! We think about truth day and night, we think about what is right and honorable, we reject the lies of this world and keep our minds set on godly things.
Application: I want to give us some practical application of this principle.
1) Start your day by reading a chapter of the Bible and think about it all throughout the day as best you can.
This is a discipline. But your ability to stand depends upon it. It does require effort and sometimes great effort until it becomes a habit.
READ IT IN THE MORING! If you will make it your priority to get up and read the Bible every day you will load your mind with everything on Paul’s list to dwell on.
If you cannot understand your translation (KJV, NKJV) then get one you can understand (THE NIV & NLT are both good). It is better to get something out of it than to read a version that you cannot understand.
And read it listening for God to speak to you personally! Do not read it like a short story, but Word to you! What is God saying to you in that chapter?
Be aware of what you are putting in your mind
Music affects the way we think through
There was a guy I knew who listened to some pretty bad music when I met him. And the music made him think about suicide (and I could see why). So I encouraged him to get rid of all that music and listen to Christian music. But during his walk he would become confident and begin downloading that music again a little at a time. Do you know it did? It made him think darks thoughts and suicidal thoughts.
Internet
This is information overload. Not all bad, but much of it is because there are far more people of this world producing content than people of God. Be careful what you allow to go into your minds.
False teaching
There is so much available to us now at our fingertips that can infiltrate our minds.
I just saw a video the other day with a guy with 1/4 million follows who is blatantly teaching false doctrine under the heading of truth.
If you hear someone teaching something that starts with something like this: “I know you have never heard this”, and goes on to contradict 2,000 years of Christian teaching, he is most likeley a false teacher.
Christians have not got it wrong for 2,000 years and then all of a sudden a goober on the internet discovers that all of God’s people who have the Spirit of God teaching them truth have gotten it wrong for 2 millenia!
What we put in our mind, matters!
whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things
CONCLUSION:
CONCLUSION:
We cannot stand firmly, until we do so in Christ
No one will be able to stand, unless he has first handed his life over the the Lord Jesus Christ.
Its not ourselves that cause us to stand, but we stand firm by the power of God.
And that all begins by giving Him your life, by faith and trusting Him with it. And you can do that today.
Turn from your sin, all of it, and turn to the Lord Jesus Christ!
~PRAYER~
